Many computerized applications present information in a user interface. Some applications are designed to present different information in adjacent portions of a user interface. For example, prior art imaging applications have presented two or more images adjacently in a proof layout. As another example, prior art imaging and document editing applications have a split-screen comparative views of a single image/document with one side presenting a first version view and the other side presenting a second version view. Different versions can correspond to an edit or changes to attributes that affect appearance of one of the views (e.g. version identifier and color settings).
One problem with presenting multiple pieces of information adjacently in a user interface display area is determining how to arrange the adjacent display regions and the information content within those regions to facilitate the user task. A preferred presentation may be task-dependent and/or information-dependent.
Some prior art applications have addressed the problem by providing automated solutions with limited user controls. For example, in an image editing application (e.g. FIG. 1), the display area size, image size, and magnification factor dictate what portions of the before and after images appear in their respective display regions so that together they appear as a single image stitched together from two pieces. A user may be able to control the magnification and/or relative sizes of each display region but presentation of the relevant portions of the information is automatically determined based on the size, position and the restricted orientation of the display regions.
Some prior art applications (e.g. FIG. 2A) allow the user to control more directly what portions of the information are presented in each display region. For example, each display region may have scroll bars to control selection of the relevant portions of information.
Another problem with adjacent displays is that the other characteristics of the display regions, such as orientation, may be advantageously controlled. As an example, comparing before and after edit versions of one image may be best accomplished with a side-by-side orientation for the display regions. However, for a different image, a top-to-bottom orientation for the display regions may be preferable.
Some prior art applications solve this problem by providing additional user controls to govern characteristics of the display regions. However, changing these characteristics may require multiple interactions on the part of the user (e.g. select view menu, select orientation dialog, and select alternate orientation) and thus may be inconvenient and distracting from the task at hand.
User interfaces having simple and intuitive user controls for adjusting a range of characteristics for adjacent display regions remain as an unfulfilled need.